Using The Glasgow Coma Scale To Determine The Severity Of Brain Injury

In many of our serious automobile collision cases we unfortunately find ourselves representing victims of a traumatically induced brain injury. During any serious car accident, unfortunately victims oftentimes strike their heads either on the seat or some other interior portion of the car. This can sometimes result in a loss of consciousness, confusion, dizziness or otherwise. When emergency personnel arrive at the scene of a serious wreck and diagnose those who appear to be confused or dazed, they typically use an assessment tool called the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS). The scale comprises three different tests: eye opening, verbal responses and motor responses. The three values separately as well as their sum are considered. The lowest possible GCS sum is 3 which is a deep coma or near death while the highest is 15 (a fully awake person). A GCS score of 13 to 15 is usually considered as evidence of a mild traumatic brain injury whereas a score of 9 to 12 is considered evidence of a moderate brain injury. Any score of 8 or below is considered a severe brain injury.
Of course, any injury to the brain is a serious injury. Thus, the term “mild” traumatic brain injury is somewhat misleading. The term “mild” is used to describe the severity of the initial physical trauma that caused the injury. In no way does the term “mild” traumatic brain injury indicate the severity of the consequences of the injury.
While the Glasgow Coma Scale score is a useful tool in assessing whether the victim of a car accident has sustained a possible brain injury, nonetheless, it may or may not correlate with a person’s short or long term recovery or functional abilities following the injury.
As we have stated before, there does not have to be a loss of consciousness for a brain injury to occur. While a loss of consciousness certainly is a sign of a potential neurological problem, the brain can be injured without the loss of consciousness. Any change in cognitive functioning following a blow to the head whether it be confusion, dizziness or disorientation can be evidence of a brain injury even though the victim also does not lose consciousness. Using a Glasgow Coma Scale evaluation, the victim may not lose consciousness but nonetheless may have a mild to moderate brain injury depending on the GSC score.